Instead of heavily upgrading the Bolero in one expensive installment, Mahindra will introduce revisions in a phased manner. To comply with the various new norms that come into effect starting this year, it will roll out upgrades one at a time, only what is required then.
From 1 April 2019, ABS will become mandatory. Starting this month, Mahindra will be equipping ABS as a standard feature in the Bolero. On 1 July 2019, driver airbag, driver and co-driver seatbelt reminder, speed alert system and reverse parking sensors will become mandatory.
From 1 October 2019, front, side and rear full frontal crash test and 40% overlap offset frontal crash test will become mandatory under Bharat New Car Safety Assessment Program (BNVSAP). In the current form, the Mahindra Bolero won’t be able to clear them, and so, a big upgrade will follow, before the end of September.
Mahindra won't stop there. After the aforementioned three improvements, it will have to introduce a cleaner engine that meets the BS-VI emission norms that come into effect on 1 April 2020. To keep the costs in control, the company has decided to upgrade the outdated 2.5-litre m2Di diesel engine instead of introducing an all-new engine.
Also Read: Mahindra developing an all-new 2.0L diesel engine in 3 versions
Maybe at the same time as the BS-VI upgrade or a few months later (by September 2020) Mahindra will likely have heightened the Bolero’s bonnet, redesigned its grille and softened the front bumper for enhanced pedestrian safety. This is because from 1 October 2020, BNVSAP will take into account pedestrian safety for existing models too.
[Source: autocarindia.com]
